Painting Speed

[Enzie Shahmiri]

Claudemir,

I agree, sometimes I wonder how much one's personalty effects the way one paints. For example, some people are very care free, therefore if something is a bit off, they are ok to laugh it off. Then there are those that are very analytical, for them everything has to make sense and lastly the perfectionist, who can't leave things be and always strives to do better and better, often sacrificing speed for achieving the ultimate goal.

Debra, your teacher is so right.I have often found that if I failed to do a step in the initial stages, it costs me more time to fix it later. It is amazing how much discipline painting requires, isn't it?!

[John Reidy]

Enzie,

I like this subject. It allows me to peak in on others work styles, similar to an art class studio or workshop. I rarely have the opporunity to visit other artists and this fills that curious void.

I agree with Michele, as an experienced graphic artist and manager I found that deadlines dictate the time. Even a schedule with copious amounts of time the job always seems to fill the gap.

I am more of the analytical type becoming more and more analytical as the painting progresses. Towards the end I can spend a lot of time away from the easel trying to determine the areas that are untrue. It is here that I can spend days viewing and contemplating with little time actually painting. Consequently I try to set up a personal deadline based solely on my experience. Then I try to beat that deadline. I usually miss my deadline but not by much.

[Claudemir Bonfim]

Originally Posted by John Reidy

Enzie,

Then I try to beat that deadline. I usually miss my deadline but not by much.

I have a friend who never meets her deadlines, she says her clients think her work is worth the money because it seems to be difficult. When she meets her deadlines, her clients say it was easy and they try to bargain in future commissions.

[John Reidy]

Interesting Claudemir,

It seems to validate the theory of "percieved value".

[Enzie Shahmiri]

Claudemir, your friend is very lucky to have such admiring clients. In today's day and age where instant gratification is almost expected, people often are baffled when they hear how long it has taken an artist to paint something.

John, I find it great that you set a time line and try to abide by it.

Someone once told me that the painting let's the artist know when it's done. Hmm, that seems to leave many artists that are hard of hearing, because there sure is a lot of unfinished work out there. Don't you think?

Joking set aside, I believe that there is truth to this statement , because if one knows the fundamentals of drawing and painting and truly follows the procedures of preparatory work, proper layout and paint application, time can be saved from the onset, resulting in a fairly decent painting. Then it becomes a matter of the artists individuality and his/her "critical eye" , weather to push further or leave it be.


Creating art is a curious thing. One person can create something beautiful in a day, another in a week and yet another in a matter of months.

[Heidi Maiers]

I think time spent making the portrait largely depends on two things - how good your reference material is and how picky the client is. If the resource material is bad - especially in cases of posthumous portraits - and if the client is difficult to please, the amount of rework can go on and on, adding months to the job.